The new album will be released as a digipack and is set for June this year through the Dutch label Descent Productions. Guests on The Fourth Era are Peter (Thurisaz), Zahrim (Panchrysia), Bart (ex-The Quiescent), Roel (Ill Fares The Land) and Jurgen (Theudho).

German label Fog Of The Apocalypse have just released a free promo sampler CD-r, together with Eternity Records.
Other Fog Of The Apocalypse releated news is the pressing of "Elite's" LP version has started.

"Belgium is more and more turning into Hellgium, and as a black metal fan I certainly feel no regrets about that…"VAMPIRE MAGAZINE

"In certain passages very detailed and calm melodies disclosure, lying softly in the background. Those melodies have something very mysterious."HATEFUL METAL

"On ‘The Fourth Era’ blackmetal is successfully used as a solid base to create a work which sets out toseek new borders of the genre without drowning in overdone style twists."FACE YOUR UNDERGROUND (90/100)

Although many of his riffs are pretty straightforward, they contain a lot of tension and emotions. The songs tend to evolve and unfold a story.LORDS OF METAL (85/100)

One of the strong points of this cd is its diversity; instead of being based upon continuously repeated riffs & rhythms it's the abundant variation and swift breaks that define the tracks.GOTHRONIC (8,5/10)

If you would combine Keep of Kalessin, Satyricon, Enslaved, Cadaver Inc, Thorns and Emperor, it would result in The Fourth Era.METALRAGE (95/100)

Classic in-yer-face Black Metal crashes down upon you like an avalanche of giant boulders with seeringly harsh riffs that drip venom from every pore.DARKSOUL VII

Gorath will enter the Shumcot Studio (Demonizer, Aguynguerran, Paragon Impure,...) for drum recording and mixing August this year. At this moment almost all vocals, guitars and bass guitars are recorded at our own Crestfallen Studio. Gorath's 3rd album will be entitled "Misotheism" and will hold seven tracks, lasting all together for about 45 minutes.

CD Elite (2005):The CD version of "Elite" is quite hard to find and Black Owl Records is dead for some time now. Perverted Taste (DE), Unborn Productions (NO), Fog Of The Apocalypse (DE), Avantgarde Music (IT), Supernal Music (UK) are selling some last copies.

CD The Fourth Era (2006):Still available! Look at the Gorath site or the Descent Productions website.

CD Misotheism (2007/2008):During the month of August the new album will be recorded and mixed. The release is set for the end of the year or the beginning of 2008. Descent Productions and Gorath will hold a special release party... More info will be posted soon.

The coming weeks Gorath will enter the Shumcot Studio recording the drums for the upcoming album entitled "Misotheism". The seven songs on the record form a special lyrical concept about Gnosticism and are the fastest, hardest and most direct Gorath have written up to date. Vocal guest contributions by Jurgen S. (Theudho), Bart Goffinghs (Hollowtone) and Tijs Vanneste (Oceans Of Sadness). Descent Productions have set the release date for the ending of this year.

"When Den of Metalism Records/Haarbn asked me whether I was interested in officially releasing both Gorath demos, I wasn’t really keen on the idea. After all, the demos sound inferior to the later Gorath releases and musically Gorath’s style has evolved since then. Nevertheless I’m still proud of “Haunting the December Chords” and “The Blueprints for Revolution”, so a Russian release of the demos, that were mainly spread in Belgium and Holland, is a good idea."

UPCOMING ALBUM MISOTHEISM:At this moment Gorath's third album "Misotheism" is being mixed at the Shumcot Studios. For the first time Gorath have recorded real drums. The coming months the album will be send to Sweden where Dan Swanö will take care of the mastering. Wait and hear...

Emerald Bookings and Promotion will take care of booking Dutch shows exclusively. Other bands on the roster are Thurisaz (BE) and Ghost Brigade (FI). Expect more shows to be announced the coming weeks.

All three official release shows are set now. Expect a first glimpse of "Misotheism" in Kuurne on the 10th of May. Up are the shows in Eindhoven May 16 and Aarschot May 17. Vain Productions is also planning a five-date German tour with ENTHRONED, GLORIOR BELLI and GORATH. We hope to confirm some official news about this as soon as possible.

Gorath have just released their third album "Misotheism". Produced by Reinier Schenk (Paragon Impure, Demonizer, Fleshmould,...), mastered by Dan Swanö (Dissection, Opeth, Katatonia,...). "Misotheism" is a concept about heresy throughout history, mythology, legend and lore.

Procession of Black Doom III (AU)This is a very complex release I got before me. To the extent where I regret ever agreeing to review it actually. Gorath is the project of Belgian multi-instrumentalist Filip Dupont, and first got my ear in 2004 when some tracks of "The Blueprints for Revolution EP" ended up in my playlist. Back then I was not very impressed, and quickly shook the effort of as a musically competent but utterly boring "modern black metal" band emerging in the wake of Satyricon's "Volcano". Now, four years and two albums later, the comparison would still be valid, but Gorath has grown a lot since then and "boring" is the last word I would use about this latest creation.. Presented on Misotheism are six lengthy tracks of crushing black metal and a trippy little interlude. From the very first track you will notice Dupont's powerful vocal arrangements and thick basslines. In addition you will be served churning riffs accompanied by the occasional electronic ambiance and thundering double pedals. And let me just mention right now that the song writing skills presented here are well above average; the tracks will twist and turn, perfectly flowing into new melodies as they go, impressing the hell out of me along the way. As with most modern BM, the production is crystal clear and while many bands in the same vein struggle with overly clinical soundscapes, Gorath has managed to nail an organic sound which will instantly remind you of some of the bigger Norwegian names. Lyrically this entire disc deals with Heresy throughout mythological history, and each set of lyrics is neatly introduced with historical and literary information in the booklet. The man responsible for both lyrics and presentations is Jurgen (of Theudho), and he really does deserve a mention of his own for that as he really ties the whole creation together as a concept album. As I mentioned in the beginning of this review, this is a very complex release, and I have probably not done it full justice with these few lines of praise… But let me say, Gorath this is definitively a name you will be hearing more of in the years to come and personally I am looking forwards to it already. (Myrk)

Vampire Magazine (NL)And there it is, a bit later than announced (a slight problem with adjusting the right colors of the artwork): "Misotheism", Gorath's third complete full length album, and the last one with Zahrim/ Maarten Geens who decided to leave the band to focus on his own band Panchrysia. The overall theme of this album this time is heresy throughout the ages, and perhaps that heretic inspiration has caused this album to be more aggressive and extreme than its predecessor "The Fourth Era". Apart from the intermezzo 'Sophia' the songs are lengthy: with a bit less than 6 minutes 'Metempsychosis' is the shortest songs on the album. When you see that, you know that an experienced band has to work with a lot of variety in paste and breaks, and Gorath is by now experienced… Opener 'Gnosis' is a typical example, with a fast kick-off, and, something which goes very much for this album, breaks in which choirs (almost religious), are frequently used, combined with clean vocals ('a prominent role in 'Abufihamet'). That is the great difference from its official predecessor "The Fourth Era": that one had much more of a groove, where as this "Misotheism" is much more complex. Sure, you can still hear that one of Filip's most favorite acts is Satyricon (just listen to the end part of 'Gnosis'), but Gorath is more. In a way I keep on thinking that because of his extensive reviewing for this e-zine, Filip has managed to put the best things he has heard into his material. This all results in an album which may have riffs and ideas you have heard before, but not put together in this way and thus creating a Gorath-sound nevertheless. Once more, this Gorath album is an typical modern black metal album: not the most primitive around, but everything worked out into the details and therefore an album that needs to be listened to various times before you can comprehend it, but after that comes the reward because you can keep on listening to it, also because of the variation from the songs: for an aggressive mood you have for instance 'Gnosis' 'Sicarii' (a bit Mayhem like) and others, where as for a melancholic mood 'Abraxas' would be a perfect song to match your mood. The sound is good, which could be expected when you have it mastered by Dan Swanö: yet with that in mind I would have suspected that the sound would be more massive than "The Fourth Era", which is not the matter, at least not in my humble opinion. Once more Gorath comes up with an impressive album that proves that good black metal is not only coming from the northern regions of the European continent! (Neithan)

Lords Of Metal (NL)'Misotheism' is a wonderful record, which is the proper start for this review. This album has an immensely international appeal: it is rugged and raw but wonderfully melodious black metal with engaging leads and excellent guitar, bass and drum work; everything about this release oozes the fact that every aspect of the compositions has gotten the attention it deserverd. 'Misotheism' opens with a dominant and sharp riff that is broken off by a Gregorian choir, only to revert back to, with the aid of some good acoustic harmonics, streaming and punishing black metal. And basically the entire album follows this pattern: there is a load of tension all the time and to top it all off all elements interact with each other properly. The comparison to Satyricon still applies on account of the musical surprises and the heavily controlled chaos. Watain could also be mentioned based on the impression the music makes, even though Gorath sounds more interesting. Gorath has a very mature sound, maybe that's the most important thing. Rating: 85/100 (Roel F.)

Thoughts of MetalTwo years ago the Belgian Black Metal formation GORATH released its second album, "The Fourth Era", which dealt with the Mayan calendar and 2012. On that album, mainman/bassist Filip Dupont created a mixture of traditional and progressive Black Metal. For the gigs he got help from his mates Zahrim (guitar) - since May replaced by Bart Put -, Geert Devenster (guitars) and Kevin De Leener (drums). This line-up (well, according to the website it was just Filip and Kevin) also created the follow-up to this highly-praised release and titled it "Misotheism". This third album is a concept about heresy throughout history, mythology, legend and lore. On this page you'll find the lyrics and liner notes about each song. Jurgen S. from THEUDHO (where Filip also used to play in) wrote the lyrics and introduction. Soundwise the famous Dan Swanö (EDGE OF SANITY, NIGHTINGALE, BLOODBATH, and many other bands) took care of the mastering. The release was set on the 16th May. With the use of real drums the songs feel of course different, fuller, rawer and more brutal. Right from the start of "Gnosis" you get instantly attacked by the blasts and slicing riffs. You can clearly hear the drums are real as Kevin sometimes has to give his all to keep up with the guitars, but that only contributes to the realness and honesty of this human input. This is the first part of the song. The second one offers a great contrast and is something totally unexpected, yet wonderfully implemented and fits in the concept without any problems: gregorian chanting introducing a very peaceful accoustic-guitar-driven interlude. This last for a few tens of second, after which the ferocious assault continues. Filip's vocals aren't as shrieking as one would expect, but he grunts more. The screaming is saved for later, when the music is flowing more. The accoustic guitar returns around 05:40 to complement the heaviness that still goes on. One minute later there's a dead part, at least the guitars and drums fall silent in favour of a creepy atmsophere, windy as if entering a new state of consciousness. It's like a passage to the midtempo heaviness that comes afterwards, where the lyrics are spoken in a grunting manner, backed by the music that leads the way towards the end. "Apophasis" is a tad different, in that the music comes over as Black 'n' Roll in a way. Filip again focuses on grunts, which are well done and fit the music quite well. Shrieks could be good, too, but the hoarse grunts just feel better. The chorus has a mix of grunts and clean singing, almost chanting, while a looped guitarmelody forms the main melody. Over halfway there's a drop in tempo, rebuilding towards something more direct, straight-forward. Kevin also tried to add some touches via the ride cymbal until all of a sudden the music stops. Just like that and there is still one good minute to go. In "Gnosis" the parts were connected and the transition was very smooth, while here you're faced with a gap of a few seconds, which could make you think that "Abufihamet" commences after that. The difference in heaviness and melody is enormous, the atmosphere has also been adapted to this tranquil and semi-accoustic minute of relaxation. But fear not, as the battle rages on, under the watchful eye of Baphomet? Just see the lyrics page to see what this song is about. It could be my hearing, but I have the impression the drums have been pushed a bit to the back, as the snare sounds a bit muffled/subdued and the kickdrums have been triggered, something that wasn't so noticeable before. Grunts in the verses, grunts and clean in the chorus. Kevin also uses his cymbals a lot (crash, ride, china, ...). Although here as well Filip tried to compose a song with fluctuations between harsh, blasting parts and slower, flowing ones, "Abufihamet" is difficult to swallow, the stay focused. You could say it's because of the music itself, but I fear the production also plays a role. There's lots of aggression and violent stuff here, but it just isn't as interesting as the previous two songs. In my opinion. "Sophia" is the shortest track, with its 2 and a half minutes. No heavy guitars, no blasting drums, no grunts or shrieks. Instead you get a dark and mysterious atmosphere with drumsamples like heartbeats, increasing in loudness. A computerized voice speaks the words of destruction, of obliteration and annihilation. You can't really say it's a song, so as listening material it doesn't have much value. In the context of "Misotheism" its role is of course clearer. Somehow this reminded me of similar interludes like GAMMA RAY's "Induction" and DRACONIAN's "Expostulation". Speaking of the battle, "Metempsychosis" is a song where this expression fits better when you read the description on GORATH's website (see link above). No specific blasting at first, but normal drumming, although Kevin does make it as diverse as possible by adding accents and playing with the tempo. The typical blasting cannot be forgotten, especially not in such a song. Filip's voice sounds as if in agony or possessed. Although the song lasts for almost six minutes, it's over before you know it. Still, this is another step in the right direction, and things improve particularly in the last two tracks. "Abraxas" is about the god of good and evil, of creation and destruction, in short, of balance. The song commences with chanting and screams to build up the tension. Midtempo Black Metal is what you get, but the elements of sadness, depression, feeling lost are definitely present. The harsh vocals also contribute to this kind of mental state. Add some cleaner vocals from someone who seems to go crazy and the picture is complete. Around 04:20 everything falls silent with just the bass guitar left. Tom accents and gentle guitarwork sets in soon after that, evolving into an accoustic Jazzy piece. Surprising, but very nice. Little by little Kevin's drumming increases in power and the whole atmosphere of devastating madness, sadness, tristesse fills the room once more. Musically I did for a moment think of NOVEMBERS DOOM "Not The Strong", off the band's "To Welcome The Fade" album. The last tale to be told is that of the "Sicarii", a political activist group operating in Judea in the first century whose task it was to get rid of the Roman occupation. The song also deals with how Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot, a members of the Sicarii. This is the shortest (08:14) of the 3 long songs, which are at least 8 minutes long. The beginning is an instant blast asault. Everything about this song screams aggression, violence, hatred, betrayal and more. Think BEHEMOTH, KEEP OF KALESSIN and similar, which is nothing but pure quality. If my short-term memory doesn't fail me, then this is the fastest song on this album. Filip still grunts, but vocally also screams/yells, which justifies the comparison with KEEP OF KALESSIN even more. Samples of knights and activists fighting help bring the story to life. The production is very good, leaving a very realistic sound on the instruments and especially on the drums. The flow of the music is very well composed: furious, calmer but still aggressive and back to raging as the fighting and betrayal are taking place. This is outstanding work and without any doubt one of the best, if not the best, song on "Misotheism". One of the great things about Metal is not only the music, obviously, but also the intelligence of the musicians themselves and their interests in history. There have been many bands on whose releases Metal was used to educate people (REBELLION, STORMWARRIOR, AMASEFFER, NILE, CRYSTALLION, JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH, etc...). GORATH also contributed with "The Fourth Era" (Mayas and 2012), which was a very good and highly praised album. This time mastermind Filip Dupont tackled a new subject (with the help of Jurgen S.) and successfully implemented the material into the music. If you want qualitative ànd intelligent Black Metal (I'm not saying Black Metal contains no intelligence, just that it doesn't always have to be about the cliché themes), then I highly recommend "Misotheism", for this Belgian band has made another big step forward.

Metalrage 80/100Gorath used to be a Belgium one-man black metal band, but after the release of the previous album the project formed into a real band. The band has been working hard to get their name out ever since, and now the new record Misotheism sees the light of day; their third effort and their second for Descent Productions. The seven tracks on this record are all reasonably lengthy and feature quite a modern black metal sound just like the previous effort. Misotheism has a clear and aggressive production (executed by the legend Dan Swanö) and a diverse sound. While the overall gimmick of this band is to bash away with modern black metal riffs, the band doesn't just stick to one sound. Fast passed riffs are alternated with slower riffs and occasionally the band throws in a musical intermezzo that one wouldn't expect from an average black metal record. Misotheism has some great hooks and angles that keep you on your toes. For the fans of new school black metal, Gorath must surely be a worthy addition to the scene. It has enough diversity to keep the listener's attention, yet it doesn't stray too much from the path to hell. Watch out for this demon on the rise!

New Album “MXCII”Gorath have booked the Shumcot Studio in order to record the successor for “Misotheism”. The band’s fourth album will be entitled “MXCII” and will contain seven deadly revelations. At this moment it’s undecided which label would host the upcoming release.

LP release “Misotheism”Eisenwald Tonschmiede have set the release date for “Misotheism” for the first part of 2009. Besides a red/brown colour 12” the first copies will hold a limited special edition. Also note the artwork will be slightly different. Any labels interested in releasing “The Fourth Era” on LP should get in touch.